Bizarre defense from defendant who killed taxi driver he boarded as a passenger

The incident occurred on October 14, 2023, on 101st Street in the 4 Temmuz neighborhood. Mustafa G. (38), who boarded the taxi with license plate 41 T 6018 as a passenger and pulled out his pistol, threatened driver Murat Karaca (42) with the weapon, asking why he had slapped his brother. Although Karaca said he had not slapped anyone, Mustafa G. was not convinced and fired 8 shots at the driver, who had made a move to grab the gun. While 7 bullets hit Karaca, the taxi, which rolled down the hill, came to a stop after hitting a pickup truck and a van. Murat Karaca lost his life at the scene. The suspect, Mustafa G., who was caught by police teams, was arrested by the court after his statement and sent to prison.

It was learned that Mustafa G. had stabbed and killed Müjdat Kocabaş, with whom he had an argument, on June 2, 2016, and had been released from prison on parole in 2020 during the pandemic process.

"MURAT SLAPPED MY BROTHER IN 2014"

The first hearing of the case opened regarding the murder of Murat Karaca began at the Kocaeli 3rd High Criminal Court. The detained defendant Mustafa G., the lawyers of the parties, the victim's family, and witnesses attended the hearing. Given the floor for his defense, the defendant Mustafa G. said, "There was an argument between my brother Kemal and the victim Murat, who is my friend and also our relative, in 2014. My brother came to me at that time and told me that Murat had slapped him. I brought them together and reconciled them, and the matter was closed, but we were not as close with Murat as we used to be."

"I WANTED MURAT TO TAKE ME HOME BECAUSE I HAD ENEMIES AND NO CASH ON ME"

Stating that he met with his girlfriend N.Ş. on the day of the incident, Mustafa G. said, "Because I was on probation, I suggested going home, but when N.Ş. said she was hungry, we went to have soup. There, N.Ş. talked to someone on the phone. When I asked who she was talking to, she brushed it off. She was using 2 phones. When she brushed me off, I got angry and took the phone from her hand. When I returned from the restroom, I saw that N.Ş. had left without my knowledge; I thought she was cheating on me. I went to the taxi stand to catch up with N.Ş. Murat's car was in the first row, but he said his shift was over. Because I had just been released from prison, had enemies, and had no cash on me, I wanted Murat to take me home. Murat accepted this request, albeit reluctantly," he said.

"MURAT SWORE AND LOCKED THE VEHICLE"

Mustafa G. continued his defense as follows:

"While we were on the road, Murat acted reluctantly, as if he didn't want to take me. We were old friends with Murat. We used to meet frequently before the incident in 2014. After the incident, our meetings decreased. I got even angrier when he continued his reluctant attitude. To learn the truth about the incident, I asked Murat about the 2014 event, I asked him why he slapped my brother. I was also angry because my girlfriend had left me, and Murat started speaking with profanity. I heard the sound of the car locking. Upon this, I showed the gun I was carrying on me to Murat to scare him. At the same time, I wanted to catch up with my girlfriend N.Ş., so I wanted him to drive the vehicle," he said.

"I DID NOT TARGET MURAT, I DID NOT WANT TO KILL HIM"

Stating that Murat Karaca stopped the vehicle and started to intervene, the defendant Mustafa G. said, "I asked Murat to continue driving the vehicle. Also, his phone rang. I asked him not to answer it because I thought that if the argument between us was heard, an investigation would be opened and my probation would be revoked. When I looked around from inside the vehicle to see if N.Ş. was outside, Murat lunged at me. I saw him looking for something, but I don't know if it was a knife or not. There was a scuffle between us, I don't remember how many times the gun went off. Afterward, I left the scene. I did not target Murat, I did not want to kill him," he said.

The victim's wife and child complained about the defendant and demanded that he receive the heaviest sentence.

"I REALIZED HE HAD A PISTOL AT HIS WAIST WHEN I HUGGED HIM"

N.Ş., who was heard as a witness regarding the incident, said, "We had talked about meeting with the defendant a few days before the day of the incident. We decided on the morning of the incident and met. When we first met, he had tense movements. He had harsh movements and words. When I hugged Mustafa and asked, 'What's wrong with you?', I realized he had a pistol at his waist. Because I was hungry and sick, we went to a soup shop. While going to the soup shop, Mustafa asked for someone named Murat at the taxi stand. Usually, when he wanted to go home by taxi and didn't have money, he would look for someone he knew. That's why I thought he was looking for the taxi driver," she said.

"I HAVE SAID GOODBYE TO EVERYONE, IF I WERE YOU, I WOULD ASK FOR FORGIVENESS FROM GOD"

Stating that the defendant displayed tense behavior at the establishment where they had soup, N.Ş. said, "I started to get scared that Mustafa would do something to me. My goal was to escape. At this stage, he took one of my phones. He was constantly shouting and yelling during the conversations. While Mustafa went to the restroom, I escaped and went home. I called the phone that remained with the defendant from my other phone that I had with me. My goal was to ask him to leave my phone somewhere; it turns out the events were happening at that time, he didn't answer the phone, that's all I know. Also, while going to the soup shop, Mustafa said to me out of the blue, 'I have said goodbye to everyone, if I were you, I would ask for forgiveness from God.' I don't know the deceased person at all," she said.

"THE DEFENDANT SAID TO MURAT, 'I WANT TO GO WITH YOU'"

Taxi stand employee K.B. was also heard as a witness. K.B. said, "On the day of the incident, the defendant came and asked for a taxi. Murat said his shift was over, but the defendant said to Murat, 'I want to go with you.' Upon this, the defendant went with Murat by taxi. Murat's vehicle was not in the first rows, it was parked in the back. I saw the defendant coming to the taxi stand once, I don't know if he had come before," he said.

"MURAT BROTHER HAD PUNCHED ME"

The defendant's brother Kemal G. said, "Murat is our distant relative. In 2014, I had a disagreement with Murat regarding a motorcycle sale. Murat brother had punched me. We went to court, but since he was our relative, I withdrew my complaint and we reconciled. My brother Mustafa knew about the punching incident, but he was not in Kocaeli. We had met with Murat ourselves and reconciled. After that process, this issue was never discussed again with either Mustafa or Murat, the subject was closed. I don't know why such an incident happened on the date of the incident. I learned about the events afterward," he said.

The court board decided to continue the defendant's detention and adjourned the hearing.

News Source: İHA